Skip to main content

Department: First Person

Media Player

Media Player

Why I happily traded 7 million viewers for 20 undergraduates in a classroom. A report from our correspondent on the frontlines.

Fall 2017

Memories of a football weekend, in black and white

Memories of a football weekend, in black and white

Writer Ray Passacantando (Col ’57) looks back on the “total bust” of a weekend in 1953 that centered around the racial divide on Grounds.

Summer 2017

Why UVA Is All They Ever Talk About

Why UVA Is All They Ever Talk About

Economics Professor Kenneth G. Elzinga reflects on the characteristic of UVA graduates who seem to keep talking about their University experiences even after entering the workplace.

Winter 2016

From Helvetica to a Helluva Ride

From Helvetica to a Helluva Ride

How did CBS Executive Producer Mary Hager end up in political media, and why does she have UVA's former football coach to thank for her career path?

Winter 2016

Questions Before Answers

Questions Before Answers

When asked how she comes up with story ideas, author Kim Brooks to points to a lesson learned from one of her UVA professors about asking questions.

Fall 2016

The Hidden Landscape

The Hidden Landscape

Vice provost Maurie McInnis (Col ’88) reflects on the University’s complicated racial history and its implications for the present.

Summer 2016

The Pause

The Pause

A UVA trauma nurse discusses the origins and importance of “The Pause,” a ritual practice that honors both a patient’s life and medical workers’ efforts to save it.

Spring 2016

The Best Investment

The Best Investment

Alumnus and current graduate student Brendan Maupin Wynn discusses the importance of offering financial aid to students in need.

Winter 2015

Look Closer

Look Closer

Annie Rorem (Batten ’13) conducts research on education and labor force participation with a particular interest in gender.

Fall 2015

Stories Evil Tells

Stories Evil Tells

Professor Alon Confino offers his thoughts on how humans use stories to explain our history and justify our motivations for doing things—the good things and especially the bad ones.

Summer 2015

The Case for Compassionate Policing

The Case for Compassionate Policing

UVA law professor Josh Bowers advocates for a shift in the ways police officers see people and people see police officers. We are all human, he says, and entitled to dignified treatment.

Spring 2015

The Roar of the Lioness

The Roar of the Lioness

Professor Farzaneh Milani shares her thoughts on the work of Iranian poet Simin Behbahani and the power of poetry.

Winter 2014

The Wake of Watergate

The Wake of Watergate

Gerry Warburg shares lessons learned from Nixon's registration in 1974, including how voter participation can inspire bipartisan action.

Fall 2014

Withholding Judgment

Withholding Judgment

Religious studies professor John Portmann ponders a difficult question.

Summer 2014

Snow Day

Snow Day

Mina Pirasteh (Col ’15) documented a snow day on Grounds.

Spring 2014

Hollywood Dreams

Hollywood Dreams

After graduation, Jon Macht (Col '82) packed everything he owned in his car and headed for Hollywood.

Winter 2013

“The Good Old Song”: Is It Beloved by All?

“The Good Old Song”: Is It Beloved by All?

Is it time to bid farewell to “The Good Old Song”?

Fall 2013

What I've Learned

What I’ve Learned

UVA housekeeping supervisor reflects on 37 years on the job.

Summer 2013

The Quality of Souls

The Quality of Souls

Alumna Audrey Davidow Lapidus writes about how a rare genetic syndrome has shaped her son's life as well as her own.

Spring 2013

Dark Skies, Bright Kids

Dark Skies, Bright Kids

Professor Kelsey Johnson helps kids reach for the stars, and find their own inner scientist.

Winter 2012

The Dilemma of U.S.-Iran Relations

The Dilemma of U.S.-Iran Relations

Iran is my birth land; UVA, my intellectual home for 60 years. Here, I've tried to advance understanding of Iran's foreign policy.

Fall 2012

What's the Rush?

What’s the Rush?

Pressure for success raises questions about the pace of life

Summer 2012

The Power of a Poet

The Power of a Poet

Spring 2012

A Funeral Procession for the Marquis

A Funeral Procession for the Marquis

An alumna explores La Fayette’s connection to the University

Winter 2011

Witness to Revolution

Witness to Revolution

Jia Tolentino (Col '09), member of the Peace Corps, survives the April 2010 coup in Kyrgystan

Fall 2011